The Old Man's Story
The Story of The Old Man: Prologue “Pull up a chair boys and girls, for today I will tell you the story of seven adventurers many, many years ago.” A couple of children gathered around an old man, huddling up with a hot cup of milk. In the village of Taraak, days were slow and the nights even longer. The most entertainment a kid could ask for, was of the travelers that frequented the local inn, the Sleeping Griffon. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, since a lot of merchants, brigands and the occasional bards frequented the small village on their way from Cardus, the capital of the kingdom. “Most of you youngsters nowadays are so fixated on how a story goes or ends, that they forget the most important thing to recounting history: ‘Every good story, from a nursery rhyme to an epos, has a beginning, a middle part and an ending.” The kids sighed deeply. The young girl with red hair looked at the old man rebelliously: “But old man.. We don’t want another of your long winded stories again. Just tell us a story of wars, dragons and paladins!” The old man’s face showed a hint of disgust. “Listen young lady. I will tell you the story my way, or there will be no story at all.” His expression shifted to a soft smile. The kids fell silent, since they knew opportunities like this were rare. The old man might be long winded, but his stories were oft time the best, so parents would allow their kids to stay up late. “We are sorry mister, please tell us.” The old man smiled and coughed loudly. “This story actually starts right here, in this very inn.” “Many years ago, a band of five adventurers decided to take fate in their own hand and apply for a job at the adventurer’s guild in Cardus. They…” “My dad works in Cardus! He told me that the church is made of gold and the streetlights are fueled by some kind of…” The old man coughs again. “Never interrupt an old man’s story. It brings bad luck and then the... “ The old man paused for a bit. “boogeyman will come. Yes, the boogeyman. And werewolves too.” A couple of eavesdropping adults laughed at the old man’s desperate attempts to persuade the kids into silence. The kid’s eyes widened and they looked at their parents in hopes of them rebuking these wild claims, but the parents kept a straight face. “Anyway” The old man continued. “ They all needed a change in their life and they hoped to find answers in an adventuring life. What they found was so much more.” The old man took a sip from his mug and pointed in the distance. “Back there used to be a subdivision of the Cardus’ adventurers Guild. It was an old building, in a terrible shape even back then, but it served as a proper base for aspiring heroes. Our heroes gathered here after their own individual travels from Cardus.” “There was a young woman, who was convinced she was a fairy”. The little girl gasped. “An actual Fairy?!” The old man continued his story as if nothing happened. “Her name was Blue. Stories say she was beautiful, but also a highly skilled magic user, who got her powers from the Fairy King himself! She was no stranger to magic that would influence what you thought and how you acted, some say she was just convincing, but many knew there was more to her.” “Like every good story, there was also a Bard.” A young boy who was wrapped around his lute looked up. “Did he… did he also play the lute?” The old man smiled warmly and patted the young boy on the head. “Perhaps, but he was most well-known for his sublime violin music. He was so skilled, he could inspire his allies and discourage his enemies with just a couple of notes” The little boys eyes’ widened. “Just like.. when I get happy if my dad plays the harp?” The old man nodded. “Exactly like that, but with just a hint of magic, you see, the Bard studied magic at a big university and was a notable magic-user himself” “What does this story miss..” The old man was thinking over. “Of course! A mighty warrior! A man of action, armed with a big sword, bigger than any of you! He used it to protect his friends and he charged fearlessly into battle! He was courageous and knew how to spot the weak spots in his enemy's defense..” A young boy with a wooden sword spoke up. “did.. did he slay a dragon?” The old man tapped his foot impatiently. “Yes, he did all of that and more. But what did I tell you youngsters about stories? Beginning, beginning, beginning!” “There was also a mysterious rogue. An aarakocra, to be precise. Before anyone knew she was there, she would have already killed half of the room! She used daggers in battle and was quick to come to action.” A lot of confused looks followed. The old man quickly added; “She’s a bird lady. She walks upright like a human, but she had the appearance of a bird.” “The last adventurer…” The kids were quick to interrupt the old man. “You said there were seven.” They reacted almost aggressively. “Yes, yes, all in due time children. For now, he is our last adventurer. “The last adventurer was a young man, with wide green and brown robes, who is what we call a ‘sorcerer’.” The kids gasped. “He used wind and earth magic and he wielded a mysterious Silver chakram…” The kid with the lute looked at him confused. “A Zabam?” he asked. “No no, A chakram. It’s like a big ring, with sharp edges.” The old man quickly explained. “But, he didn’t use it to fight. He used it to call upon his friend, the Wind. With a simple gesture he would conjure up a storm to blow away his enemies and help his fellow adventurers.” The old man ordered another drink and the kids grew anxious with anticipation. The Story of The Old Man: Day One “It all started in this very town. Our adventurers met up at the local branch of the adventurers guild. A scarred man gave them leads to their very first adventure. There were rumors of a group of dangerous goblins nearby. The scarred man, Kerrick Greatshield, was a veteran. He provided our heroes with the stuff any adventurer needs and sent them on their way. The group quickly realized they needed a cart and mule for all the riches they were sure to find. They visited the local store, and through some crafty bartering they acquired their very first shared property; A mule and cart. They stocked up on the necessary goods and…” One of the kids was quick to interrupt. “What was the donkey’s name?” The old man sighed. “You forget to ask about our heroes’ names, but you ask about the donkey?” He asked. The young boy blushed. “Anyway, they continued their way to this very inn. Right where you are sitting right now was a curious gnome. He sold maps of the area and the party thought it would be good to come prepared. They bought the map for two gold pieces and…” The little girl laughed. “Two gold pieces?” She exclaimed in disbelief. The old man mumbled in agreement and continued. “They left the town on their way to save the village of the goblin threat. The roads were dangerous and our heroes were aware. One of them noticed in time that they were about to get ambushed. Imagine if they didn’t know?! It would make for a pretty short story!” The kids laughed in agreement. “After a bloody fight, our heroes emerged victorious. They hid their cart and our rogue followed one of the goblins back to their hideout. It was a cave, not too far from here. They ventured in, but it was pitch dark!” “Why didn’t they just used a candle or make the sorcerer cast a fireball?” The girl asked curiously. “Well” The old man replied “If they would, they would betray their presence immediately! Blue was a magical creature and she could see, even inside the darkest of darks! Our heroes snuck in and devised a plan. They were about to be discovered as the sorcerer came up with a ruse. He attempted to bluff the goblins out by pretending to be a big army captain. The party was quick to follow, using magic to make the goblins belief there was a whole army waiting for them! The goblins were quick to surrender and ran straight into the arms of our heroes!” The old man gleefully told. The boy frowned. “That doesn’t seem very heroic. So.. that’s it?” He asked impatiently. The old man shook his head. “No, dear no. There was one very big and dangerous hobgoblin, who refused to give up. For he was a mighty mage himself! He even had a ballista, aimed straight at the party. It was such a powerful machine, it shattered the wooden table that the party used as a cover! After a mighty battle between our party and this leader, they injured him so much, that he fled away. The party wanted to chase him down, but the tunnels collapsed and he was nowhere to be seen…” Some of the kids’ jaws visibly dropped. “But this fight was not without any injuries of their own. The mighty warrior almost died, as the magic of their leader was too much to handle. Blue brought him straight back from the brink of death with a single, magical touch. After taking care of their wounds and rounding up whatever riches they would find, the party found themselves in unexpected company. The sorcerer was hell-bent on making friends with one of their former foes and said hobgoblin told them of something dangerous; The goblins were preparing for war. They came from the mountains and were to attack your precious village!” The kids looked at the old man in horror. “But! The heroes killed them all right? right?” The old man laughed. “That is a story for tomorrow night. Our heroes knew they were no match for an army and they needed more help. This is where our sixth hero comes into play.” The kids complained about the old man abruptly cutting of the story. The parent got up from their barstools and took the kids home, the old man finishing his drink and retreating to his room upstairs.